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Chapter 19.5--Thanksgiving With The Williamson's

Logan

I pull up the driveway to my house. I've always called it a 'house.' Buthonestly, it's called the Williamson Mansion. Calling my home a mansion always soundedcondescending to me. Regardless of what you want to call it, the WilliamsonMansion does have a lot of history. And as far as mansions go, it's prettyordinary in a spectacular way.     

My grandfather was the man who began Williamson Corp. The story begins back in the 1940s. My grandfather signed up to go to war shortly after Pearl Harbor. Just before leaving, my grandmother and him got married. I have to admit that their love story is the kind you'd find Nicholas Sparks writing about. But anyways, my grandparents got married on my grandfather's twenty-first birthday. It was a few days before he was supposed to ship off to Europe.

On their wedding night, my grandmother gave him a gift: a watch. Right now, a watch seems like a trinket, but at the time my grandparents weren't exactly living the American Dream. It took a long time for my grandmother to save up for that watch and she admitted it was always going to be my grandfather's twenty-first birthday present. It just turns out they got married then too.

When my grandfather was overseas, he never bothered changing the time on the watch. He always told me he liked looking down at his wrist and seeing what time it was back where his lovely wife was. He told me he'd imagine my grandmother eating lunch just before going to sleep. Or sometimes, he'd wake up so early he would picture her sleeping beside him. Like I said—romance seekers would have a field day with his love story.

The point is, one day he was at camp waiting for provisions to arrive. He was apparently sitting just outside the medical tent when he started to fiddle with his watch. I'm not exactly sure what was wrong with it, but he sat outside the tent trying to fix it. During that short time, the idea of Williamson Corp came to him. He quickly rushed back to his tent where he began to write a letter to my grandmother explaining his new idea and dream for the life he could build for them back in the states.

My family likes to think my grandfather survived the war with the purpose of setting up Williamson Corp. After all the stories he told my father and I, it's honestly a miracle he lived. When he finally came home from the war, he began to set up Williamson Corp. A few years later and the business took off. He bought this land with his first paycheck. He began constructing the mansion the day my grandmother told him she was pregnant. Ever since, it's been known as the Williamson Mansion.

Every few years, there must be renovations—after all, the house is relatively old. My mom has redecorated several times. And when my mom was pregnant with me, my dad decided to expand the mansion further. Now it looks like your typical Hollywood mansion with bright lights, an amazing front garden, and fountain in the front of the circle driveway. But you can still tell it's from the 1950's with the tall columns and architecture.

I gulp and start to feel the jitters in my stomach. What if they don't want to see me? I think, It's still not too late to turn back.

I check the clock 5:57 pm. I bet Veronica is going to call me at six on the dot. I pull myself together. It's time for me to step up. Or at least, to try. I turn the car off and ruffle my fingers through my hair. It's weird not wearing a hat, almost like my head is exposed to everyone. I bite my lip ring to feel some reassurance. As I get out of my car, Sur begins to wag his tail and starts to vibrate with excitement. He barks at me as I walk to his side of the car to undo his doggy-belt. Once I manage to clip on his leash, he jumps out of the car and starts to sniff the ground like it's the most interesting thing in the world.

Next, I drag him to the back where I grab Cap'n. She hisses at me angrily as I lift her crate up. Using one hand to hold onto Cap'n and Sur's leash, I reach out with my spare and balance the apple pie.